Mount Burdell
Visited on February 22, 2018
Location: Mount Burdell: 38.1394° N, 122.5931° W, Elevation: 1,558 feet
Mount Burdell is a summit that is 1,558 feet high from the Novato Valley. The habitat is considered to be a serpentine grassland. Because of this kind of habitat, many rare plant species grow here, however, there are many Oak Trees that grow in this location as well. In 1977, the San Marin Improvement Association purchased the Mount Burdell Preserve in hopes to restore and improve the conditions of this open field. The condition of this mountain has improved greatly since then.
Toxicoscordion fremontii
Common Name: Meadow deathcamus; Family: Melanthiaceae
Toxicoscordion fermontii is a monocot, perennial herb that is native to California. Its leaves are long and green. Its flowers are bisexual and are white and yellow in color. The petals are ovate and come in multiples of 6 and the flower has a nectary center which is yellow. There are also 6 stamen. The inflorescence is raceme. This was found on a slope before the open field part of the mountain. The maximum height is 1.5 meters.
Mimulus douglasii
Common Name: Purple mouse ears; Family: Phrymaceae
Mimulus douglasii is a dicot, annual herb native to California. The leaves of this flower are ovate to obovate and are whorled, closer to the soil. The flower of this species resembles a ‘mickey mouse’ shape and is a bright fuchsia in color. The lobes of the flower are uneven and from the side you can see a tube-like throat. This purple mouse ear was found in random places in the open field on serpentine soil. The maximum height of this flower is about 4 inches.
Ranunculus Californicus
Common Name: California buttercup; Family: Ranunculaceae
Ranunculus californicus is a dicot perennial herb that is native to California. The leaves of this herb are highly dissected and is usually divided into 3 segments. The flower is bright yellow, multipetalled, and radially symmetrical. This particular buttercup pictured was found in the open field. The maximum height is 2 feet tall.
Information About the Trip:
We left USF at around 12:45 pm on Thursday. The weather was about 55 degrees Fahrenheit. The drive over there was beautiful with the sun beaming down on the Golden Gate Bridge. When we got there it immediately got colder than what we had anticipated the weather would be. It was freezing cold and even rained a little bit when we were out on the field. A trend I noticed about the species located at Mount Burdell is that they are all very small in size. Most of the flowers I saw were smaller than a dime and stood about 4 inches from the ground. In contrast to those tiny flowers, we also observed huge Oak Trees that had grown in the open area that we were. I liked the openness of the area we were in, I just wished the weather was nicer when we were out there!